Participation of filigree artisans under cloud

CUTTACK: The filigree artisans of the Millennium City might give the ensuing Balijatra a miss.With chances of the artisans withdrawing from the event looming large, a concerned district administration has decided to accommodate other traditional art and craft forms like Dhokra casting and Pattachitra, in the muchhyped Filigree Pavilion. According to sources, the development is the outcome of a bitter infighting within the Cuttack Mahanagar Baniya Samaj, the body of traditional silver filigree artisans of the City.The body has not been able to provide a final list of artisans who would be participating in the fair.Moreover, the district administration asking the participants to share the expenses of setting up the pavilion is believed to have contributed significantly to the artisans’ disinclination to participate.The administration has asked the Samaj to bear one-third of the expenses, while the rest would be borne by the District Culture Council.The pavilion has been set up at an estimated cost of  Rs 10 lakh.The Samaj members are not willing to pay their share, a little over  Rs 3 lakh.The administration has contended that the artisans would earn a over Rs  6-7 lakh.Hence they should share the expenses for the pavilion. “As the filigree artisans did not come forward, we have decided to bring in Dhokra artisans from the Badamba- Narsinghpur pockets of the district as well as famous Pattachitra painters from Banki.These art and crafts reflect the cultural and artistic heritage of Cuttack city and thus need to be showcased on a bigger scale,” said Collector Girish S N.The air-conditioned pavilion would accommodate around 20 stalls this year.Besides display and sale of finished products, the pavilion would have demonstration corners where artists would demonstrate the making of dhokra and pattachitra products, including processing of raw materials, crafting and painting. The administration had launched the filigree pavilion last year in a bid to give a wider exposure and marketing linkage to the filigree artists. The pavilion had been a success last year.